Former India player turned veteran commentator Aakash Chopra has said that the Delhi Capitals (DC) will hope that Rishabh Pant’s probable availability will help them to turn the table in their fortunes in IPL 2024. However, the Capitals missed Pant in the last edition of the IPL and they were led by David Warner. They finished ninth in the 10-team league and will hope to do well this season.
In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra said, “Last year, the Capitals had taken an oath that they would stay close to the bottom of the table. The chances of Rishabh Pant’s availability are bright this year. It seems like spring will suddenly come once Rishabh Pant comes in. They have taken Tristan Stubbs, who I feel is a good option, a wicketkeeper-batter who can bat down the order. They now have Ricky Bhui and Kumar Kushagra. They had saved a lot of money for Kumar Kushagra, that they needed him for sure. I felt they would break the bank for Shahrukh.”
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However, Aakash Chopra also feels that the Delhi Capitals failed to resolve their lower-middle order issues.
“You had to strengthen your middle order and lower-middle order because that is where the problem lay. You have David Warner, Mitchell Marsh, Prithvi Shaw and Rishabh Pant, if he is there, at the top, but who at Nos. 5, 6 and 7? Their last year’s problem will remain almost similar this year as well,” he shared.
Aakash Chopra also added that Rishabh Pant might solve quite a few of the side’s problems. However, he also added that the lower-middle order does not have that much power, considering that he is slightly doubtful about Harry Brook delivering the goods.
“They released quite a few fast bowlers. They let Mustafizur Rahman and Chetan Sakariya go. So it seemed like they would have to shop a little for fast bowlers and they did that,” Aakash Chopra concluded. “They bought Rasikh Dar, who was doing well, in fast bowling and they have kept Jhye Richardson. They earlier went after Spencer Johnson as well. Jhye Richardson is actually not a bad choice.”
